title: Functional characterization of two microsomal fatty acid desaturases from Jatropha curcas L.
abstract: Linoleic acid (LA, C18:2) and α-linolenic acid (ALA, C18:3) are polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and major storage compounds in plant seed oils. Microsomal ω-6 and ω-3 fatty acid (FA) desaturases catalyze the synthesis of seed oil LA and ALA, respectively. Jatropha curcas L. seed oils contain large proportions of LA, but very little ALA. In this study, two microsomal desaturase genes, named JcFAD2 and JcFAD3, were isolated from J. curcas. Both deduced amino acid sequences possessed eight histidines shown to be essential for desaturases activity, and contained motif in the C-terminal for endoplasmic reticulum localization. Heterologous expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Arabidopsis thaliana confirmed that the isolated JcFAD2 and JcFAD3 proteins could catalyze LA and ALA synthesis, respectively. The results indicate that JcFAD2 and JcFAD3 are functional in controlling PUFA contents of seed oils and could be exploited in the genetic engineering of J. curcas, and potentially other plants.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Plant Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization, South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China.
authors.forename: Pingzhi
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Sheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yaping
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Meiru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Huawu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Guojiang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D044943:Fatty Acid Desaturases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000378:metabolism*; D031286:Jatropha / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000378:metabolism; D012639:Seeds / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; D044943:Fatty Acid Desaturases
keywords: ACP; ALA; FA; Jatropha curcas; LA; Linoleic acid; Microsomal fatty acid desaturase; PUFAs; TAG; acyl carrier protein; fatty acid; linoleic acid (C18:2); polyunsaturated fatty acids; triacylglycerols; α-Linolenic acid; α-linolenic acid (C18:3)